Do you consider the therapist's office a safe or good place to be?

Very much so. Both because of my T and the several offices I saw him in: always soft lighting, no lurkers, comfy recliners, a deep sense of privacy and separation from life outside.

Yes , both my T and his office in combination feel like a safe space.

I voted the sack. Can I bring my own dog though?
I really like my T, and I like her therapy space a lot, but it doesn't feel safe at all, simply because of the anxiety I feel in going, and the stuff I bring to that space.

It does feel like a safe space, but I wouldn't go as far as to say a refuge. I don't really feel unsafe the rest of the time. I suppose it has positive and comforting associations for me though.

Yes. Her office is in a great big 100yr old house. She has a big fireplace which is often burning and a big old noisy clock. The tic tock is very soothing and the chairs comforting. I relax as soon as I walk in.

Nope, not at all. Sewn up with a viper for sure. Her sporadic attempts to be gentle, validating etc significantly add to the viper-ish element -- am constantly on edge, waiting to be struck down at the next go.

Not a refuge really. I'd call my home a refuge, not my therapist's office. But I do find the therapist's office safe.

Yes, I consider it a safe place. Not a refuge, but safe.

For me it feels safe, but there is no refuge anywhere. I'm just too old to think my therapist could actually protect me from anything, but in the time I'm there I feel safer than when I'm out in "the real world."

Once I'm there and the talking begins, I start to feel somewhat safe. I don't think it has anything to do with the space. I think it's that T makes me feel that it's OK to say whatever I need to say.
There are many times that the anxiety and anticipation of going makes me feel like I have been tied up in a sack with a viper, a monkey, and a dog...

At first I did not feel safe there at ALL. I would go in each week dreading it and wishing I was never there. I would always be shaking or I could barely speak. I've been going for a year and only for the past 3 weeks I've built the courage to talk to T about things myself, without her bringing them up. It feels amazing. I NEVER thought I would be at the point where I can talk to T about how I feel. Although, I still use emailing as a way to open up it's still progress. I do consider it a safe place though, because when I feel like crying ( I never have in the office though ) I can just imagine how soothing it'll be to cry in that office.

My personal experience was NO. the viper, the river etc....

Like some others have said, it's T's presence that makes it feel safe for me.

The room is a blah medical room.

Yes. It is where I feel understood and accepted.

A good therapist listens mostly and ocassionally repeats back what you have said so you know they are listening and tries to help guide you not tell you what to do. Those therapists are good therapists. I had one who actually took a class just to help me. That's an awesome therapist!

yes I consider my therapist's office to be a safe place for me when I am in a crisis situation or when my anxiety level is high or when I'm upset crying my eyes out cuz I'm feeling hurt or being very emotional .

For me, "No - it is like being sewed up in a bag with a viper, a monkey and a dog and tossed into the river each week" sounds a bit extreme and "Not really" too light, so I picked other.

In our good moments, therapy as a relationship is a safe space for me. My therapist's home was safe and when he worked in a villa 10 minutes' walk from my place, that was a nicely-scented, delicate, safe haven for me. But the place where he works now is ugly and packed with therapists and clients and I do not feel safe there. The walk to and from the room where my therapist works is hell for me every week. I often come in panting from the anxiety of going to that place and then once settled I immediately start worrying about having to go back out. But after 3-5 minutes I calm down and therapy can help me feel safe when there's a connection.